Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on June 9, reiterated his stand on terrorism at the 17th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit which was held in Astana, Kazakhstan. “Terrorism is a major threat to humanity. We will have to make coordinated efforts to counter the menace of terrorism,” he said at the summit. Both India and Pakistan were formally inducted as SCO members at the summit. PM Modi also met his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif in Astana where both the leaders exchanged greetings. “After 12 years of observership, will get membership of SCO. Want to thank all members for their support. We have extensive cooperation with SCO nations. We want to deepen the focus on connectivity,” PM Modi said at the summit. Earlier, PM Modi visited St Petersburg in Russia to attend the 18th India-Russia annual Summit. “Met President Putin. We had a wonderful meeting during which we discussed India-Russia relations,” PM Modi tweeted on June 1 after his meeting with the Russian President. On the other hand, Putin also asserted that the bilateral trade relations between Russia and India will not be impacted by Moscow’s growing relation with Islamabad. “We do not have any tight (military) relations with Pakistan. And for sure our relations with Pakistan have no impact on trade between India and Russia,” Putin said. * On June 17, PM Narendra Modi addressed a gathering at Kochi on the launch of PN Panicker National Reading Day. “I appeal to people to give a book instead of bouquet as a greeting. Such a move can make a big difference. “I admire the work of people like late Sh PN Panicker ji and his foundation. Sh. PN Panicker was also the driving spirit behind the library network in Kerala,” the PM said. Earlier, on the same day, PM Modi addressed a gathering of 3,000 people after inaugurating the Kochi metro and said that the rail project took forward the Make in India vision. “Kochi has seen a rapid increase, expected to reach 23 lakhs by 2021. Therefore a mass rapid transport system is essential to address the increasing pressure on urban infrastructure,” he said* On June 24, PM Narendra Modi and Portugal PM Antonio Costa issued a joint statement after both held in-depth talks during PM Modi’s visit to the country. “17 cooperation projects have been identified, we are working with institutions. Our talks have covered wide variety of areas. While in past it was maritime link that connected our two countries, but today its the digital link that’ll join us in future. We thank Portugal for your consistent support for India’s permanent membership of UNSC, and of Multilateral Export Control Regime. We have agreed to set up a joint Science and Technology fund of four million euros. New agreements in the field of taxation, science, space, youth affairs and sports outline expanding scope of our partnership,” PM Modi said.. Speaking on the centenary celebrations of the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, PM Narendra Modi on June 29 again condemned the violence perpetrated by against people in the name of cow protection. “Killing people in the name of cow is unacceptable. No one has the right to take law into his/her hands. We belong to a land of non-violence. Violence is not the solution to any problem. Vinoba Bhave and Mahatma Gandhi have shown the path to practice gau-bhakti, ” he said.